Traverso’s has received its first shipment of black and white truffles. Claudio Valentini, who manages the cheese department and is the go-to guy for truffles, told me this morning that he expects to have them through, at least, January.

A basket of black truffles from the south of France

Black truffles sell for about $16 an ounce. White truffles go for about $125 an ounce, which seems really high but is actually quite a bit lower than in recent years, when they’ve been as high as $300 an ounce. But it’s better to think about truffles, especially white truffles, by the gram.  $4.50 a gram for white truffles doesn’t sound so bad, does it? And gram for gram, white truffles pack more aroma and flavor than almost any other food, with the exception of the notorious durian, of course.

The best white truffles come from the Piemonte region of Italy

When it comes to enjoying the prized truffle, let simplicity guide you. You don’t want any other strong flavors to compete with it. One of my favorite ways of enjoying truffles is to put several great–and I mean the very best you can find–eggs into a glass jar, add the truffle, seal the jar and store in the refrigerator for several days, during which time the eggs will absorb the truffle flavor and aroma. When you are ready to enjoy the remarkable dish, grate the truffle, scramble the eggs slowly in good butter and fold in the grated truffle during the last 60 seconds or so of cooking. Serve neat or with good toasted hearth bread slathered with butter. (You can read Seasonal Pantry’s most recent column on eggs here.)

I do something similar with rice. I put the most delicate of the Italian rices, Vialone Nano, into a glass jar, add a white truffle and let it infuse in the refrigerator for several days. Then I make a very basic risotto, with nothing more than butter, shallots, rice, homemade chicken stock and two cheese, taleggio (you can substitute teleme) and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Shave the truffle as thinly as possible on top of the risotto immediately before serving it.

It is also traditional to grate a white truffle over thin-crusted pizza topped with good olive oil and Italian fontina or Parmigiano-Reggiano.

If you have favorite ways to enjoy truffles, please post them here in the comments section.

In 2007, French chef Daniele Mazet-Delpeuch, who has fed French presidents, opened La Borderie, a restaurant specializing in the cuisine of the Perigord and teaches cooking at her home, visited Sonoma County. Daniele’s grandparents, who produced more than 40 tons of truffles a year, introduced her to truffles when she was a child. Diane Peterson wrote a great article about her when she was in town; if you want to read more about truffles, this is the perfect place to start.

I love to pair truffles with a dry sparkling wine but certain pinot noirs are an event better match, including this one, the best pinot I have tasted in at least a decade. Its maker, Don Baumhefner, told me recently that he still has some available.

Copeland Creek 2005 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

(Visited 1 times, 1 visits today)